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The Golden Poison Frog of Colombia is probably the largest and certainly the most controversial dart frog in the world. Join us as we learn about this stunning amphibian and describe everything there is to know about its care and breeding in captivity.

Article, Photos and Videos by John Clare

Background

The Golden Poison Frog, scientific name Phyllobates terribilis, was first described to science in 1978 by Charles W. Myers, John W. Daly and Borys Malkin. While the species was new to science, the native Emberá Indians of the Cauca region of Colombia had made use of the frog’s powerful toxins for centuries.

Dr. Daly in particular was famous for studying the chemical compounds produced by organisms like frogs, known as natural products, for possible medicinal applications. To put this in context, most anti-cancer drugs used today are toxins whose dosage is tuned for maximum anti-cancer effect but minimal toxicity to the human body. Much of the inspiration for today’s top pharmaceutical drugs comes from chemical compounds discovered in nature. Every day, teams of chemists and biologists travel to remote parts of the world in search of plants and animals that may produce valuable chemical compounds new to science. These compounds could lead to potent non-addictive painkillers, more effective anti-cancer drugs, and possible cures for other terminal illnesses that claim so many
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General InformationThe Imitating Dart Frog is a native of northern and north-eastern Peru, in the provinces of Loreto and San Martín, from the foothills of the Andes Mountains eastwards. These frogs generally inhabit lowland rainforest, but some populations can be found at higher elevations, even in excess of 900 meters (~3000 feet). First described to science by Rainer Schulte in 1986 as Dendrobates imitator, in 2006 Grant et al. reclassified the species as Ranitomeya imitator, separating all Amazonian thumbnail poison frogs into the genus Ranitomeya, whose members are characterized by the first finger being shorter in length than the second. "Thumbnail" gives a good impression of just how small these frogs truly are, because even a large female Imitating Dart Frog is less than 2.5 cm (1 inch) from snout to vent. However, what they lack in size is more than made up for by their brilliant colors and generally bold personality.

Captive CareThis species has been shown to be naturally monogamous, so the most naturalistic number of frogs to keep in a terrarium should be a male and female pair.
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